Flatts Village Bermuda
Flatts is a sleepy fishing village located in Hamilton Parish halfway between Hamilton City and the town of St. George. A large part of it is also in Smith's parish. Flatts village is all about the beautiful pastel colored houses, picturesque fishing areas, palm trees, great landscapes and nice eateries.
Flatts village faces the Harrington Sound inland sea area which is full of caves, grottos and subterranean passages. You will find more than 100 types of sponge in the waters here.
Mark Twain lived his last few days in Flatts in 1910. He was in love with the place and used to frequently come back here to stay in one of his friend's exquisite waterside house. His friend Charles Allen was the U.S consul during those days. Not much has changed in Flatts since then.
Flatts village was one of the earliest British settlements in the island that took place in early 1600s. Somers, who came by the ship
Sea Venture in 1609 to colonize Bermuda for the first time, also mentioned about Flatts village in his charts. During the time when capital of Bermuda was in St. George, the parliament at times met at the Flatts Village. The area became favorite to the rich and wealthy.
Flatts Village Bermuda
Photo: tequilamike/flickr, cc by 2.0
However, no one knows how this village was named as Flatts. Surely the land is quite flat here. But that doesn't seem to be the reason. In one of the official documents dating back to 17th century, a term called Fleights was used to refer to this location. It was found out that the word Fleigh in Dutch means a frame to dry up the fishes or tobacco. Flatts Village in the early days used to thrive on Tobacco trade. So who knows if that might had been the origin.
Over the years, Flatts has gone through several changes. In the 1700s, this used to be the second busiest port after St. George. But by 1850s, due to heavy sand deposits, water started becoming shallow and larger ships could no longer make it to Flatts harbor.
So Flatts started losing its importance as a port. Then it became a den for the smugglers. They used the water area here to avoid customs at the other major ports of Bermuda. But all that has changed, and over time, Flatts has become a sleepy fishing village.
In 1926,
Bermuda Aquarium Museum and Zoo was opened in Flatts village making it one of the top tourist attractions in the island. You will be able to see more than 200 types of fishes and other invertebrates here in the aquarium.
There are some great fishing points here including the Flatts bridge and the dock area. Although fishing off the bridges are supposed to be illegal in Bermuda, this is one place where such rules seem to be flouted quite often. Line fishing from the rocks below the bridge is also quite popular.
During summer, you can see daring youths jumping from the bridge into the water below. The water area here is also used for sailing, kayaking, windsurfing and many other water sports.
Flatts Bridge, Bermuda
The best place to get a view of Flatts is from the T-Docks or the grassy area across the road from Bermuda Aquarium, or even from the Flatts Bridge. This is the village where
Helmet Diving in Bermuda first started - it's like an underwater walk on the ocean floor and you don't need to know swimming.
Rustico is a nice Italian restaurle pant in Flatts Village located on the North Shore Road. They are famous for items like lobster tail wrapped in Bermuda spinach. It comes with a warm mango dressing and topped with prosciutto.
Indigo with a terrace overlooking the bay and having six dining areas offers nice multi-cuisine food including Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Italian and European cuisine.
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Here is an
experience shared by a viewer of this website who lived in the Flatt's village once.
Reaching Flatts Village
Flatts Village is located in Hamilton Parish. Bus routes #10 and #11 operating between Hamilton City and St George pass through the upper part Flatts Village.
If you are hiking along the
Bermuda Railway Trail section which passes through Hamilton Parish, you would be passing by Flatts as well. The
Aquarium (BAMZ) is located nearby and across the Flatts bridge. So a combined visit of Aquarium and Flatts could be a good idea.
Road Map
Nearby Attractions and Eateries
Rustico is an Italian restaurant nearby which you can try for a nice pizza or other Italian fare (38 North Shore Road, Flatts Village). You can also try the Four Star Flatts for a variety of Sandwiches, chicken wings, Chinese and Indian dishes (6 North Shore Road, Flatts Village). At Bermuda Aquarium complex you can also stop by at the Aquarium's cafe- Buzz Beastro for a bite. The
Village Pantry with beautiful facade, a charming dining area and al fresco patio is another venue that you can try. You can choose from a variety of options on the menu that includes vegetarian, vegan and gluten free options (8 North Shore Road, Flatts Village).
Related Articles
1) Check out
Hamilton Parish to find out other great attractions in the parish.
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